Women are leading menstrual dialogue in Nepal – and in the process, challenging the status quo

PLAN International is a global organization that works to increase the rights and access to gender-responsive, adolescent-friendly, and inclusive menstrual health management. The organization set up Pad Banks in schools and has also partnered with local advocacy groups to train and educate young women and girls on menstrual health and hygiene, all in hopes to address stigma, misinformation, and period poverty.

To reduce unplanned pregnancies, Delaware "embarked on an ambitious experiment" that worked to eliminate barriers that prevented women from pursuing alternative forms of birth control, such as cost and convenience. After two years, rates of unplanned pregnancies decreased by 15 percent.

At various camps for internally displaced persons, the Gender Equality Peace and Development Center built three permanent safe spaces for women and girls that have experienced gender-based violence. The Center is not only a safe space for these people to go but also empowers them by teaching them new skills, providing access to health care and a sense of community.

In Nigeria, where menstrual stigma keeps most men silent, two men are leading efforts to fight period poverty. Jighjigh Nyam uses his youth-led Literacy Empowerment Foundation to visit schools, break menstrual taboos, and distribute sanitary pads, reaching over 2,000 girls with menstrual health education since 2023. In another region, Haruna Mohammed has developed a method of transforming discarded banana fibers into affordable, reusable sanitary pads, training over 80 women to produce them independently.

She Deserves Uganda provides menstrual hygiene education to young girls and an organic aromatherapy solution to pain from period cramps they call The Cramp Relief Droppers, as a safer and more affordable alternative to traditional over-the-counter painkillers. The group has provided menstrual health education to over 10,000 girls across 50 schools and has distributed over 1,540 units of The Cramp Relief Droppers.

In Niger, an initiative challenging menstrual stigma is promoting knowledge and hygiene through community engagement and mentorship. Since 2019, the foundation has reached over 20 schools, 35 communities, more than 3,000 women and girls.

The Inspire Women, Men and Children (IWMC) youth empowerment group is teaching women and young girls how to construct reusable sanitary pads in an effort to address period poverty and prevent them from missing school and work during menstruation. The group follows up with students to ensure they’ve properly constructed pads with safe materials and also further educates teachers on how to provide support to students who menstruate.

Brencare Foundation’s Safe Space Project meets once a week within local schools to provide menstrual health, hygiene, sexual and gender-based violence education to girls in need. So far, the Foundation has reached about 5,000 women and girls across several communities with its education efforts.

Girls&More educates girls on menstruation, puberty and menstrual hygiene. The group travels to schools and throughout rural communities to talk to girls and provide them with sanitary pads and other resources they may struggle to access.

A Nigeria-based NGO is setting out to address period poverty by providing those in need with reusable sanitary napkins and also teaching them how to make the products themselves, all while educating them on menstrual hygiene and working to reduce the stigma surrounding periods.